SA lifestyle brand Otherland Hotels enters SL market with new 66-room oceanfront property in Galle

From left: Otherland Hotels co-founders Rishi Sreedharan and Samarth Gowda

South Asian lifestyle brand Otherland Hotels has officially entered the Sri Lankan market, with the announcement of a new 66-room oceanfront property in Galle. 

Scheduled to open in June 2026, Otherland Galle marks the independent hospitality collective’s first international venture and its most visible statement yet in the region’s evolving tourism landscape. 

Positioned close to the historic Galle Fort on the island’s southern coast, the property aims to intersect the town’s vibrant surf culture with the emerging creative subcultures, delivering a dedicated lifestyle address tailored for the modern traveller.

Founded in Bengaluru, India, in 2023, by Rishi Sreedharan and Samarth Gowda, the brand was conceived as a direct challenge to the standardisation often found in the corporate hospitality sector. 

While the broader Asia-Pacific lifestyle hotel segment has seen supply quadruple over the past decade, heavily concentrated in Southeast Asia, Otherland is strategically focusing its investments within the South Asian market. 

The collective operates on four core pillars: fluid experiences, rooms functioning as basecamps, human-centric hospitality and highly differentiated food and beverage offerings. 

For the Sri Lankan expansion, the founders are joined by Emanuel Sidhartha as co-founder, who brings significant expertise from the local hospitality and cultural ecosystem.

The debut expansion into Sri Lanka comes at an opportune moment for the island nation’s hospitality sector, which recently generated robust revenues amounting to hundreds of billions of rupees in national tourism earnings. 

Otherland Hotels founder and Chief Executive Officer Rishi Sreedharan stated that South Asia requires a hospitality brand that authentically reflects its loud, vibrant culture, without adopting a superficial aesthetic.

He noted that the brand’s vision is to establish a distinctive lifestyle language, earning its place by catering to those who seek more than just standard accommodation. 

Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Samarth Gowda added that stepping into the international market meant finding a unique location within their own geographic backyard, ensuring the property amplifies the destination rather than merely reflecting it.

The architectural vision for Otherland Galle, executed by Studio Camarada, specifically opens the hotel to its coastal setting. 

The property features fluid spaces connecting the lobby and the rooms, anchored by a double-height central bar that seamlessly integrates guest check-ins, with an all-day cafe and gelateria. 

The interior design incorporates directional carpets patterned after the rhythm of the surf, while the room floors unfold in custom batik-inspired designs featuring sandy tones, ocean blues and sun-baked rust, highlighting the bespoke nature of the development.

A core differentiator for the property is its heavy investment in distinct food and beverage programming, which the brand views as central to the modern lifestyle hotel experience. 

The hotel will house three unique culinary concepts, most notably a fifth-floor rooftop venue named Creatures, which transitions daily from an all-day dining pool club to an electrifying evening destination, featuring international DJ residencies and live sound programming. In the lobby, The Bar-kery will serve as a continuous coffee, cocktail and casual dining space. 

Beyond the standard amenities, Otherland Galle is pioneering an always-on cultural calendar. This includes the Otherland Surf Club, operated in exclusive partnership with the local wave-riders, alongside rotating chef residencies and mixology pop-ups that spotlight regional produce, heritage curries and the stories of local farmers and foragers.